ZDNET’s key takeaways
- IT modernization has been going on for decades.
- AI agents can add cohesion to modernization efforts.
- Only 10% of IT leaders use agent AI for modernization.
At some point in your career, or at many points, you may have been asked to help with an IT modernization program, porting applications from older systems, such as mainframes, to newer systems, whether on-premises or in the cloud.
Also: 5 ways to use AI to modernize your legacy systems
Modernization has been on CIO agendas for decades. Popular efforts have included web services, microservices, cloud, virtualization, and x86-based Windows and Linux servers. These efforts aim to create more advanced and flexible systems.
When you reflect on these trends, it sometimes feels like modernization is always something that is five years away. Now it’s AI’s turn to modernize IT systems.
Until now, AI implementations have overtaken technology modernization efforts, according to a survey of 2,000 senior IT decision-makers by IT services specialist Kyndryl. Only 10% of tech leaders said they are applying agentic AI as a modernization tool. The burning question: Will AI ultimately make a difference where previous efforts have fallen short? Or is AI just another elixir in a never-ending quest?
Enter agents AI
The results of modernization as we know it have been less than stellar. Kyndryl researchers have found that modernization is often just another expensive, time-consuming project.
“Only about half of those who modernize report achieving better IT operations, and less than half see innovation gains,” the study’s authors observed.
“Nearly one in five, 18%, say their companies see limited or unclear value from modernization efforts.” In addition, almost half of the respondents said they were behind schedule and suffered cost overruns.
Also: The best AI leaders are ‘a bit off the wall’, says Google Cloud executive
Modernization must become more than exchanging mainframes or other legacy systems for something leaner.
Enter agentic AI, which will configure the next wave of modernization. This time, instead of replacing mainframes and other legacy systems, the focus is on expanding tangible business capabilities.
“Cost reduction and legacy escape are no longer the leading motivations to modernize,” Kyndryl said. “As AI increases demand on nearly every element of IT, and as sovereignty considerations become more acute, leaders want their complex technology areas—a mix of old and new decisions—to work better.”
Also: 12 rules of agentic AI for successful enterprise transformation
Agents can operate autonomously while providing greater visibility over dependencies between systems, both legacy and new. “Fewer than one in 10 organizations are fully confident they know these dependencies today, a significant technical blind spot,” the Kyndryl report said.
“Agentic AI shows early promise for addressing longstanding challenges in modernization and speed advancements,” the Kyndryl authors added.
“Agent AI is used to map hidden dependencies, generate code, and create documentation—all traditionally time-consuming, error-prone processes. Organizations that don’t use agent AI for modernization are far more likely to be behind schedule than early adopters.”
The legacy of tomorrow
However, modernization challenges remain despite AI’s promise. Even the most forward-thinking organizations can find modernization an endless quest.
“IT modernization is increasingly looking like a chronic condition,” said Andy Thurai, founder of The Field CTO and former chief strategist at IBM, commenting on the study.
“According to this report, four in ten companies still run mainframes. We keep hearing modernization is the number one mandate, but the finish line is always 5 to 10 years off.”
Also: AI agent kill switch demanded by Okta-led alliance – how businesses could do it
Another issue is that “organizations are addicted to buying software,” Thurai said. “The legacy systems underneath are almost never dismantled. AI is now the latest shining distraction from the grind to unravel this technical debt.”
CIOs must contend with a situation in which “vendors are pitching AI to IT leaders as the cure-all,” Thurai continued. “The economy won’t stop. If AI drives infrastructure sprawl, the monthly bill will become a black box. The report found that three in 10 leaders already worry that AI-driven modernization will end in wildly unpredictable computing costs.”
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AI-based modernization may have its moment in the sun, especially for organizations “that have moved past the bolt-on chatbot,” Thurai said. “They use agentic frameworks as an orchestration layer to map out hidden technical dependencies, then generate the missing documentation as they go. Agentic AI accelerates initiatives that used to eat up months of error-prone manual work.”
In short, Agents could just be the last chapter of a nonstop journey. “Sooner or later, today’s AI-driven architectures will be legacy environments that someone else will have to modernize,” Thurai said.